


Submechanophobia

by Daddy_Clarinetist



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Air Hockey, Canoes, Established Relationship, Florida, Fluff, I started this fic proud of myself, Lakes, M/M, Phobias, Pipes - Freeform, Vacations, Water, a ladder, a lot of unnecessary beginning stuff probably, blow up houses/structures, but by the end it turned bad, but they vacation there, cuz I’m going off of my own experiences with vacations, fears, gross rope, inflatables, lots of car rides, planes, so deal with it por favor, sorry - Freeform, submechanophobia, the sides don’t live in Florida in this fic btw, very slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-08
Updated: 2019-01-08
Packaged: 2019-10-06 10:34:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,951
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17343725
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daddy_Clarinetist/pseuds/Daddy_Clarinetist
Summary: “The fear of fully or semi submerged man made objects. When seeing fully or semi submerged man made objects people with Submechanophobia Can get anxiety to a full-blown panic attack.”-diveprice.comThe sides take a vacation together to Florida, where they encounter more than what one of them can handle during a trip to a nearby lake.





	Submechanophobia

**Author's Note:**

> This is based off of my own fear. I have submechanophobia, and a lot of people think I’m weird for it. It’s something I’ve always had. Ever since I was young, I had been unsettled by certain man made objects, especially in lakes and the ocean. A year or two ago, I finally found out what it’s called and that I’m not alone with this fear. This fic showcases my experience I had with my friend at a lake just like the one I wrote about. I projected myself onto Virgil, but for him, I gave him more support on it. While I’ve never been totally ridiculed or bullied for my fear, I would still love to have somebody to calm me down like this. 
> 
> Some people have full on panic attacks with this fear. I have not had one yet, but I also have avoided going near anything in the water that could possibly throw me into one. So far, I have been able to quickly calm down from my anxiety with this stuff once I’m away from it. That’s why it seems to take Virgil a very short time to get himself together again as well.
> 
> Sorry for how bad and rushed it gets at the end. I hope you enjoy!

Virgil sighed as he stared at the last suitcase that sat on his bed. It was filled with an assortment of items, and only a few more things needed to be stuffed into it. In a few minutes, he would be done packing up all of his stuff, which was a huge relief for him. He had spent the past hour or so trying to perfectly place everything in the suitcases and carry on so that everything would fit. He was worried that if something didn’t fit, then he would be forced to leave something important behind. 

 

That month, Virgil and his friends, Patton, Roman, and Logan, were going on a vacation together. It was the summer before their first year at college, and they wanted to do something special as a group. Roman and Patton were going to two different local universities, but Logan and Virgil were planning on going out of state. Coincidentally, they were going to the same university, as they had both been accepted into their dream school. They were going to be roommates, and they would video call Roman and Patton all the time. 

 

For their vacation, they were flying to Florida in order to stay at Patton’s grandma’s house. She was letting them stay so that they didn’t have to pay for a hotel. Patton was very grateful for her. 

 

As Virgil was finishing up his packing, a buzz came from his phone. Picking it up, he found that he had a text message from Patton. 

 

_ P: Hey, you almost ready? We just picked up Roman, so we’ll be coming to get you next! _

 

_ V: Yeah, I’ve just got to pack a few more things. I’ll be ready by the time you guys get here. _

 

_ P: Alrighty! We’ll see you then! _

 

Patton must have told the others that he was still packing his last few items because a few seconds later, he got a text from Logan.

 

_ L: You’ve got to break this habit of last minute packing. _

 

_ V: I’m almost done! _

 

_ L: One day, you’re going to end up being unable to finish packing in time for your trip. _

 

_ V: I’ll be fine. _

 

Logan did not text back. He was probably exasperated by Virgil’s inability to manage his time wisely. It was probably really funny to see, but unfortunately he was not with him at the moment. Next time. 

 

Virgil and Logan were actually dating. They had been best friends since their sophomore year when they found that they had some of the same geeky interests. Logan had just moved to the school district at the time, and Virgil was glad to have another friend who clicked so well with him. He was especially happy when his other two friends liked Logan as well. Now, they were all very close to each other. Logan had been the one to ask Virgil out, and the two have been happy ever since.

 

A few minutes later, just as Virgil zipped up his bag, a knock sounded throughout the house. Opening the front door, Virgil found Roman standing there, waiting for him. 

 

“Where is your stuff? I’m helping you pack everything into the back of the car,” Roman told him.

 

“Okay, but I can carry my stuff out by myself, you know,” Virgil reminded his friend. 

 

“Sure you can. Now, let’s go!”

 

Roman grabbed Virgil’s suitcase before he could react, dragging it outside. Virgil shouted as he grabbed his carry on bag in order to follow Roman to the car, locking the front door on the way. When he got to the car, he found Roman stuffing his suitcase into the trunk. Virgil placed his carry on into the trunk as well, thanking Roman for the unnecessary help. Then, they both climbed into the back seat where Logan was already sitting. Patton sat in the passenger’s seat in the front next to his mom, who was driving them to the airport. Virgil sat in the middle of the back, Logan and Roman on each side of him.

 

“Good morning, Virgil!” Patton’s mom greeted him.

 

“Morning,” Virgil replied, struggling to buckle his seat belt. “Roman, your butt is in the way of my safety.”

 

Roman grumbled as he moved so that Virgil could buckle his seatbelt, muttering about how his fabulous butt did not deserve to be bullied. Once they were all situated, they headed to the airport, talking along the way. 

 

“My younger cousin, Talyn, is also staying with my grandma with a  friend this week,” Patton told them. “My aunt heard that we were going to stay, and my grandma invited the two to stay as well since my aunt and uncle had wanted to go on their own vacation that only allows adults. We’ll probably have to drive them places every now and then.”

 

“That won’t be a problem,” Logan said. “We’ve met some of your family before. All of your cousins have proved to be really nice.”

 

Soon, they arrived at the airport. The four of them stared out the windows of the car, watching a plane taking off in awe. Virgil had to lean across Logan in order to properly see, but neither of them minded. 

 

“What if the plane crashes while we’re on it?” Virgil asked, concerned about the possibility of dying.

 

“There is only a one in eleven million chance of dying in a plane crash,” Logan reassured him. “You are more likely to be killed in a car accident or even being struck by lightning.”

 

“Thanks, that’s very reassuring,” Virgil said, not even sure himself if he was being sarcastic or genuine. 

 

Pulling into the parking lot, the four of them got out of the car while Patton’s mom turned off the vehicle. When she joined them, she found them getting their bags out of the trunk. She helped out as best as she could, not wanting to leave all of the work for them.

 

“Do you guys have everything that you need?” She questioned. “All of your bags, the tickets, your phones, money, and everything else?”

 

They all checked their pockets and counted their bags. None of them were missing anything, so they were able to head straight into the airport. Patton’s mother had to leave in order to get to work on time, so she explained everything they needed to do before waving goodbye. 

 

The four of them went through security, bag check, and everything else they needed to do before the flight. All of their luggage, minus their carry ons, were taken from them in order to be placed onto the plane. In the extra time that they had, they got something to eat at one of the restaurants near the gate they would have to report to in about half an hour. Sitting at the table, munching on some food, they discussed what they would be doing during their vacation.

 

“Our trip to Disney is next week,” Roman grinned.

 

“Oh, yeah, I’ll need to tell my grandma that we’re going to stay at a hotel there for a few days so that she doesn’t get worried about where we are,” Patton realized. “She’ll be confused about why we want to sleep at a hotel when we’re staying with her, but I’ll try to explain how staying at the hotel will let us go to the extra magic hours in the parks.”

 

“My dad helped me book a hotel for us,” Roman said, “so we’re all good with that.”

 

“What hotel are we staying at again?” Virgil asked.

 

“It’s called Port Orleans - French Quarter,” Logan stated. “I did a lot of research on different hotels, and this is the one that Roman picked when I told his dad about the ones that looked to be the best. It has a nice pool with a water slide that looks like a sea serpent. The rooms look adequate, and they even have horse drawn carriage rides, though I’m not sure if any of you will be interested in those when we have the theme parks to go to.”

 

“It might be something relaxing to do the first or last day there when we will inevitably want to be lazy,” Virgil said. The others agreed.

 

“Alright, so what parks are we going to on each day,” Patton asked, excited to know what they would be doing.

 

“We have the hopper passes, so we can go to any of the parks at any time when we want,” Roman said. “We’ll have to look at the extra magic hours later in order to plan where we go so that we can stay in the parks for a longer time.”

 

They talked and ate a little more before they had to go to the gate in order to board the plane. They waited for their section to be called, then boarded the plane. Their section in the plane had rows of seats that consisted of three on both sides by the windows and four in the middle. They were going to get four seats in the middle, but they ended up getting seats on the sides instead because there were more of them available. Since there were only three seats on the sides, they got two seats in two rows, both containing a window seat and a middle seat. 

 

“I call a window seat!” Patton exclaimed as he claimed his spot. Roman laughed as he sat next to him, watching Patton happily look out the window at the amazing view of still being on the ground.

 

“Which seat would you like?” Logan asked Virgil. 

 

“I don’t mind which,” Virgil lied, not wanting to admit that he really did not want to sit next to whoever would be sitting in the aisle seat due to his social anxiety. He was embarrassed by his lack of ability to interact with other people. Luckily, Logan knew him too well.

 

“I’ll take the middle seat, and you can have the window seat,” Logan said. Virgil nodded, silently thanking him. He placed his carry on bag in the compartment above them. Then, he sat down, glancing out the window as he did so.

 

A little while later, the plane started to move. It lined up at the runway, preparing for takeoff. Once it was ready, it zoomed down the runway, lifting up off the ground. The plane climbed higher into the sky, on its way to the destination.

 

“Now let’s hope we don’t run into the Nightmare at 20,000 Feet,” Virgil joked. Obviously, he was ready for the Tower of Terror as Disney World. His mind was stuck on making jokes about the unsettling show that it referred to.

 

“A Twilight Zone reference? I knew there was a reason why I liked you,” Logan said.

 

“And here I thought it was because of my stunning looks and great personality.”

 

“Yeah, well, maybe that too.”

 

The two of them chuckled. The plane ride wouldn’t be super long, but they still had ways to go. They settled back, ready to just relax the entire time. Virgil plugged in his earbuds while Logan got out a book. Virgil leaned against Logan’s shoulder as best as he could, closing his eyes so that he could possibly sleep. Logan pat his knee, keeping his hand there to comfort the boy in his slumber.

 

Finally, after what seemed like forever to some and no time at all to others, the plane landed in Orlando, Florida. Virgil was fast asleep at Logan’s side, and he did not want to wake up when he shook his shoulder. When he did open his eyes, he found that half of the passengers had already exited the plane. Logan stood up, helping his boyfriend do so as well in his groggy state. They grabbed their carry ons, then they left the plane as well, catching up to Patton and Roman.

 

Virgil was fully awake again by the time they made it to baggage claim. Finding their bags was pretty easy, though they had to wait on one of Patton’s bags for a little while. After they managed to retrieve it, they headed out to the parking lot. Patton’s grandma was picking them up there. She would have met them inside, but as she was getting older, her ability to walk slightly longer distances in a completely crowded place was becoming more and more limited. Therefore, they were just going to meet her at the car.

 

Dragging their luggage to the parking lot, they waited for Patton to call his grandma to see where she was at. His family had gifted the elder with a touch screen phone for Christmas that past year, so she was able to keep in touch with her children and grandchildren through calls and Facebook. Other than that, she did not really use her phone. Patton had promised her that he would show her some fun apps she might like during the trip. He and Roman had been brainstorming different games for her a few days before, Virgil suggesting one or two as well.

 

“She’s over there,” Patton pointed to their left. Sure enough, there she was. The four of them went over to her, struggling with their baggage along the way.

 

“Hello boys,” Ms Morals greeted them, giving her grandson a tight hug. “It’s so good to see you!”

 

“Hey grandma!” Patton grinned at her. 

 

“Thanks for letting us stay with you,” Roman appreciatively said.

 

“Oh, it’s no problem at all,” She replied. “I’m glad you are all able to be here. It’ll do me some good to get some company from my family who don’t live nearby, and you know how much I love you three. Patton sure does have some great friends.”

 

They stuffed their bags into the trunk of car, expertly stacking them so that they would all fit. Then, they got into the car, sitting in the same spots as when they were in Patton’s mom’s car. The drive to the house was about twenty away, but it did not feel that long. When they got there, they brought their suitcases into the house, pausing by the front door since they did not know where to go from there.

 

“Alright, so I have multiple rooms for you guys to choose from, as I have many guest rooms for when we have family get togethers over here. Talyn and Joan are already here, and they have chosen two rooms upstairs. There is one more upstairs and two in the basement. They all have king sized beds since Talyn and Joan only wanted the two with twin beds. You are all responsible adults now, so I trust that you can share beds like real men. No getting too handsy in my beds, though,” Ms Morals looked straight at Logan and Virgil as she said this, making them blush profusely. Apparently, she had already known about their relationship.

 

They decided to take up the two rooms in the basement. Roman and Patton took the one to the left. They were very close for friends, and the other two knew that they had feelings for each other, but they were oblivious. Roman claimed that he was waiting for the right moment, the most romantic and dramatic moment, to reveal to Patton his desires to date him. Patton just blushed when Logan or Virgil asked about his feelings for Roman. Usually he would rant about all of the things that made him happy, but he got shy when it came to the boy. 

 

Virgil and Logan took the room to the right. They quickly unpacked some of their bags, putting this clothes in the drawers in order to make it easier for themselves later. 

 

A knock sounded on their door. Opening it up, Virgil found Patton standing there.

 

“Hey,” Patton said, “my grandma made us some lunch.”

 

“Yay,” Virgil smiled, “I’m starving!”

 

They made their way back upstairs and into the dining room. There, food was set up in the middle, plates in front of each chair. Talyn, Joan, and Ms Morals sat already, waiting for the rest of them. They sat down, and they all started to grab food. 

 

“Hey, Patton,” Talyn spoke up, “can you guys please take Joan and me to this lake nearby after we finish lunch? They have things like canoeing and blow up structures to jump off of into the water! It’d be a fun thing to start this vacation with!”

 

“Yeah, sure, I can drive you if grandma is okay with letting us borrow one of her cars,” Patton told them. Looking towards their grandma, she nodded, agreeing to let them take one of her two cars. She had been planning on letting them use it anyway, as she did not want to tire herself out by driving them everywhere.

 

“Yay! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

 

“Do you guys want to go too?” Patton asked his friends.

 

“Sure,” Roman said.

 

“I do not have any problems with that,” Logan agreed.

 

Virgil hesitated with his answer. Something about this trip to the lake unsettled him. He did not know what about it was causing him to become so anxious, and frankly, he did not want to find out. However, he did not want to look like a wimp in front of his friends, so he said that he wanted to go too. 

 

When they finished their meal, all of them headed to their rooms in order to change into their swimwear. Virgil’s swim trunks were plain black. There was nothing special about them, just the way he liked it. Logan’s, however, had a cool galaxy print on them.

 

“Space Nerd^™ is at it again,” Virgil giggled.

 

“These are glorious, and you know it,” Logan defended his choice of swim trunks.

 

“Yes, you look good.”

 

Keeping their shirts on, of course, they head back upstairs in order to meet everyone in the living room. Once they were all there, they went to pile themselves into the bigger of Ms Morals’ cars, as that one would be able to fit all of them. Patton was driving, so Roman naturally claimed shotgun. There were two seats in the middle row on the sides, which was where Talyn and Joan sat. In the space between held the few bags they were taking of towels, sunscreen, snacks, and more. Logan and Virgil sat in the very back seats of the car.

 

Virgil still had no idea why, but he was feeling really anxious. A feeling of dismay sat in his stomach, telling him that there was something wrong with where they were going. This lake was not going to be safe; something bad was going to happen, and probably to him.

 

“Are you alright?” Logan asked him. “You seem distracted.”

 

“Yeah, I’m fine. I think,” Virgil said.

 

“You think?” Logan was confused.

 

“I have a bad feeling for some reason, but I do not know why. Something about where we are going is bothering me.”

 

Logan scooted closer to Virgil, settling himself into the middle seat. Wrapping his arms around the other boy, Logan reassured him that he would be there, and he told him that everything would be fine.

 

Arriving at their destination, Patton drove the car to the parking lot. There was a small restaurant by the parking lot, as well as a few other buildings, and the lake was a short walk away. They decided that they would eat there later for dinner so that they could spend more time in the lake without worrying about going home to eat. Grabbing their bags of towels and other items, they made their way over to the lake.

 

The lake was a wonderful sight, especially for the younger teens, Talyn and Joan. It wasn’t nearly as big as other lakes, as the other side of the body of water could be seen from where they stood. A dock stood to the right, and there was a ladder dipping into the water. Behind the dock, a few feet away from the water, stood a small shack. The door was opened, revealing that life jackets and paddles occupied the space inside. A lifeguard sat in a chair beside the shack, watching over the water while assisting those who needed an item from the building. Another lifeguard stood by the water, actively making sure that nobody drowned. 

 

A few canoes sat on the side of the lake near the shack, ready to be used. A few are already in the water, staying on the far side of the lake, roped off from what floated in the middle. Some were standing on the canoes, as they were the ones made to be easily stood upon. Others simply sat, looking at ease as they paddled through the water. 

 

The sight that made Virgil pause was of large blow up structures in the front part of the lake. While it wasn’t all the way out to where it would be difficult for a lifeguard to quickly save a person, it was still obviously in very deep water. Virgil had a slight suspicion as to why he had been nervous to come here.

 

“You didn’t say those things were in the middle of the lake,” Virgil croaked, staring wide eyed at the structures.

 

“I told you there were some things to jump off of,” Talyn reminded him.

 

“But…  _ IN _ the water?”

 

“It wouldn’t be safe to put them on the sides where kids would jump right into the ground because the water is so shallow.”

 

They trekked on, finding a good place on the small piece of land that was covered with sand by the shore, acting as a tiny beach. They kept more towards where the grass and sand met, not wanting their stuff to be too close to the water.

 

“It’s nowhere near as nice as a normal Florida beach, but they have fun things in the water, so I’ll take it for now,” Roman said.

 

“We’ll visit a bigger beach soon,” Patton reassured him, knowing that the other boy desired to see the beautiful sights of the ocean. 

 

They took off their shirts and shoes, revealing their swimsuits. Patton forced them all to put on sunscreen and bug spray, some more reluctant to do so than others. As soon as they were finished, they approached the shack. It was a requirement for all people at the lake to wear a life jacket, as the water was very deep. Some spots behind the giant structures were out of view of the lifeguards, so the life jackets prevented anyone from starting to drown outside of their vision. Talyn and Joan quickly threw on their life jackets before running out into the water, racing to see who could get to the giant blow up trampoline that was in the water.

 

The other four took their time, waiting until all four of them were ready before discussing what they were going to do first. They decided to go canoeing, as there were a few canoes open at the moment. It would be best for them to use them before other people took them. That way, they would not end up disappointed later when they would want to canoe, but would see that there were no canoes left. They grabbed four paddles from the shack.

 

Patton and Roman claimed the first canoe. Roman held the boat in place while Patton climbed on. He handed him the paddles to hold while he got on himself. Then, they were off, laughing at how it took them a hot second to figure out how to properly use the paddles.

 

Logan dragged another canoe into the water, holding it in place. He glanced at Virgil, about to motion for him to hop on, when he noticed how uncomfortable his boyfriend looked.

 

“Virgil?” Logan questioned. “What’s wrong?”

 

“I,” Virgil really wanted to admit to Logan what was wrong, but he also did not want him to think differently of him. Panicking over not wanting to spill his secret, he blurted out the first thing that came to his mind. “I’m scared about falling in and drowning.”

 

It wasn’t a total lie. He was terrified of falling into the water, but not because he was worried about drowning. He knew how to swim, and he had the life jacket, so he knew that he wouldn’t drown. Just looking at that water, though, made him nervous. It wasn’t the clearest water, and he couldn’t see much into the water. He had no idea what could be lurking in the depths of it.

 

“I’ll be here if anything happens,” Logan reassured him. “We don’t have to do this, you know. We can always go sit by the water on the beach or even in the shade somewhere. I would not mind doing that.”

 

Virgil shook his head, not wanting to ruin this trip for his boyfriend. They had gone to pools and beaches together before, so it would be suspicious if he worried too much about this here. He carefully got onto the boat, making sure his feet were pulled onto the surface. He did not want his feet hitting the water. Logan climbed in behind him, firmly securing his legs beside Virgil so that the nervous boy could feel more grounded in reality. 

 

Slowly, they paddled down the strip of water that led to the back side of the lake. Roman and Patton looked like they were having the time of their lives. Oddly, they were paddling around something they had found in the water. When they saw the other two had gotten on their canoe, they waved at them, trying to get them to come over.

 

“Come look at what we found!” Roman shouted. Logan started to steer them over to where their friends were, but Virgil was hesitant to help. As they got closer to whatever was in the water, the object got clearer. Virgil stopped all together, not wanting to go on.

 

His heart was pounding so hard that it made him feel sick. The feeling of dread that had washed over him all day intensified. He had to get away from it. There had to be a way out of that lake quickly that didn’t involve jumping in and swimming away. Just the thought of jumping into that water made Virgil feel like he was going to puke. What if it ran all over the lake around there? What if he jumped in and his foot hit another part of it? He would rather drown at this point.

 

There, protruding from the water, was the end of a pipe. A black, metal pipe that almost blended in with the water. It stuck a few inches above the water, and it was the most terrifying sight that Virgil had ever seen.

 

“I dare you to touch it,” Patton dared Roman. Roman grinned as he leaned forward, reaching his hand out towards the pipe. Virgil watched in horror as Roman’s fingers brushed against the monstrosity, unable to look away in fear that the pipe would get closer if he didn’t keep his eyes on it. He was trembling by now, and Logan definitely noticed.

 

“V? Hey, hey, Virgil, it’s okay,” Logan spoke into his ear as he leaned forward, trying to get closer to the other in the awkward canoe. “What’s going on? Can you tell me what you need?”

 

Tears sprung up in Virgil’s eyes. “I need out of this lake right now. Get me out. G-Get me out, please.”

 

“Okay, we need to turn the canoe around, then. Can you help me do that?”

 

Virgil nodded, weakly doing his best to help Logan turn the boat. Once they were facing the way they had come, they paddled back, Logan doing most of the work. Virgil felt too weak to do much, but he tried hard to do his part. On the way, he accidentally dropped his paddle into the water. His mind was in too much of a panic to convince him that pulling it out would only take a quick second. As the paddle sunk lower, Virgil shook even more. Luckily, Logan noticed what happened, and he was quick to reach in and pull the paddle back up. He gave Virgil the paddle he had been using instead of the one that fell into the water, sensing that it would make him feel better to use the drier one.

 

Getting back to the land, Logan helped Virgil get off the canoe before following. He pulled the canoe onto the grass so that it wouldn’t drift away. Virgil had already set the paddle down, and he was now sitting where he had crawled far away from the water. Logan rushed over to him, pulling him into his arms after making sure it was alright to touch him. Whispering breathing exercises, he helped calm the boy down from his panic.

 

“I’m sorry,” Virgil whimpered when he was finally able to breath again.

 

“It’s okay,” Logan said, “you didn’t do anything wrong. I was worried for you. Are you comfortable with telling me what happened?”

 

“I never wanted to tell anyone this, but… I can trust you not to laugh at me, right?”

 

“This appears to be the opposite of a laughing matter,” Logan pointed out, “but yes, I promise not to laugh. I want to know how to help you with whatever this is.”

 

Virgil glanced at his boyfriend, feeling more confident. “I have what is known as submechanophobia.”

 

“Ah, that makes sense. The fear of man made objects in water. I don’t understand, though. How have I not noticed your fear before? I’ve seen you around water.”

 

“Yeah, but we’ve only ever been in pools with clear water and beaches where I can avoid any type of object that might be out there. Things like those pool toys won’t bother me until they’re in murky, dark water. Pipes always creep me out, which is why I panicked out there. I could never go near a shipwreck. There is a reason that I stay away from that submarine exhibit at that science center you enjoy. They actually put it in water and let people go in it! Heck no!”

 

“Huh… I always just assumed that you didn’t like the small space of it.”

 

“I did go into the small room they have that mimics the control room of a submarine.”

 

“I guess you’re right,” Logan admitted to his observations being wrong. Smiling a little, he leaned in to give Virgil a small peck on the lips. Staying close enough that their lips brushed against each other, he said, “Thanks for trusting me with this new knowledge of you. This certainly is a big phobia you have, but I’m glad that I know about it. Now I can make sure to avoid taking you on any dates that could trigger your fear.”

 

“Thank you for not laughing at me,” Virgil replied, “and for not leaving me for it.”

 

“Something like this would never make me love you any less.”

 

They shared another kiss, soaking up their love for each other. When they pulled away, they found Roman and Patton disembarking their canoe. They approached them, a worried look on their face.

 

“What happened out there?” Roman demanded to know.

 

“I don’t see ho-” Logan started, but he was cut off by Virgil.

 

“It’s okay,” Virgil sighed, getting ready to admit to his fear to his best friends. He did not want to hide it anymore. “I’m scared of man made objects submerged in water.”

 

“...What?” Roman was confused.

 

“Awe,” Patton frowned, “that’s fine. We’re all afraid of something. I can see how you find that scary. Thank you for telling us.”

 

Roman still looked confused, but he decided to go with it. He did not want to hurt his friend by thinking that his fear was dumb. While he might not have understood the phobia, he could respect that people were scared of different things.

 

“That probably means that you won’t want to go out onto the inflatables, right?” Patton asked.

 

“I don’t know,” Virgil looked out at the water with unease, “I can usually take sitting on top of boats, so I could probably make it to that trampoline one. Just as long as there aren’t any pipes or anything over there.”

 

“I’m pretty sure there isn’t anything over there,” Patton said, though he was not certain. Virgil wanted to risk it, for he did want to participate in these water activities. Patton helped him stand up, and they walked to the dock together. Roman and Logan trailed behind. Logan was distracted, as he was trying to figure out how the inflatables were floating in relatively the same spots in the water. There had to be something keeping them in place so that they would not blow to the other side of the lake. By the time he figured out what it could be, Patton had already helped Virgil jump into the water, telling him he could still turn back if he wanted. The ladder going back up to the dock made Virgil nervous, and he was not really looking forward to having to get out of the lake now. It was either get out that way or go under the nasty rope that sectioned off the shallow water from the deep water. There was no way he was going near that rope, especially since it was covered in some type of gross substance.

 

Virgil and Patton were swimming to the nearest trampoline inflatable as Roman and Logan jumped into the water. Logan swam as fast as he could to catch up to the others, trying to warn Virgil before it was too late. However, they had already reached the blow up structure by the time he got to them. Virgil looked extremely nervous, so Logan decided to wait to tell him his bad news after he got him out of the water and onto the trampoline. Floating next to him, he managed to help Virgil climb onto the inflatable platform that was connected to the large structure, as it was too big to climb onto the thing itself from the water. While he helped his boyfriend, he kept his eyes peeled, trying to see if he could spot anything in the water. Luckily, they did not seem to be near what he was looking for at the moment. Once Virgil was onto the trampoline, Logan climbed up himself, falling to his side on the bouncy material to avoid slipping back into the water. 

 

They bounced on the trampoline for a little while. As they did so, Logan thought about what he was going to tell Virgil. He was thinking of not letting Virgil know of the situation until he was out of the lake in order to prevent him from full on panicking. Well, that was the plan… until Roman started asking questions.

 

“So, how are these things not being blown across the country?” Roman spoke up, slowing down his bounces.

 

Virgil froze, coming to a halt immediately. He had not thought of that. He looked down at the material they were bouncing on. It had small holes in it, just like a land trampoline had. As the others stopped bouncing as well, he crouched down, peering through the holes. What he saw made him recoil.

 

“Th-They’re chained to the bottom of the lake??!!” Virgil squeaked. 

 

Logan leapt forward, trying to calm Virgil’s mind with some beautiful  **_logic_ ** . He looked through the holes too, figuring out where all the chains led. “They appear to be going straight down, and the ones that aren’t are pointed in the opposite directions than where we need to swim in order to exit the lake.”

 

Virgil shook, still not okay with anything that was happening. “I need out of this water right now.”

 

“Okay, okay,” Logan focused, needing to come up with an escape plan. “How about I get in the water first. I’ll make sure there aren’t any chains near us. Then, you can jump as far out into the water as you can go so that you’re further away from them.”

 

Virgil nodded, feeling that that was the best plan they’d be able to come up with. Logan stood up, and he jumped into the water. Looking around, he found that the coast was clear. Signalling to Virgil that it was safe, he swam out a little bit so that he was there when the other jumped in. Preparing himself, Virgil took a deep breath before jumping into the water. Frantically, he started to swim to the shore, Logan keeping up so that he was by his side. Once they got to the ladder, Logan helped him grip onto the parts not hitting the water. Boosted up by his boyfriend, Virgil crawled onto the dock, getting as far away from the water as he could get. Logan climbed up next, shooting the lifeguard nearby a look that said everything was okay when they were staring at them curiously.

 

“I apologize, Virgil,” Logan said, “I should have tried to warn you beforehand that something was keeping those structures in place.”

 

“It’s fine,” Virgil forgave him. He took a deep breath, calming himself down. While he was terrified of these objects in the water, he was still able to recover from his panic over it fairly quickly. Since he was away from it, it did not bother him as much.  “I still had fun out there, so it was worth it, I guess.”

 

“Virgil, here! I found something that will make you feel better!” Patton’s voice rang out. Sitting down in front of Virgil, he held his hands out to him. They were cupped, hiding what was inside. Virgil squinted at him, suspicious, but he trusted Patton. He brought his hands together, letting Patton carefully place what he had into them. 

 

Virgil smiled when he saw what it was. Patton had caught a frog just for him. It was small, green, and cute. 

 

“Thank you, Patton,” Virgil said, “This does make me feel better. His name shall be Alfred.”

 

Alfred sat there, calm, while Virgil thought about how much he appreciated his friends. They were there for him no matter what, and they were able to calm him down when he was freaking out like he just was. He would not trade them for the world.

 

“Alrighty, well, Patton and I are going to go back to the water, if that’s alright,” Roman said.

 

“That’s fine,” Logan nodded, “I’m going to take Virgil to that building that’s near that restaurant. I believe I saw a sign that said there were a few games in there. When you guys are ready to go, come find us.”

 

“Don’t forget about Talyn and Joan,” Virgil reminded them. 

 

“We won’t! Have fun!” Patton ran off with Roman, jumping back into the water.

 

“So, what do you say?” Logan asked Virgil. “Do you want to go play some games with me?”

 

“Heck yeah, let me put Alfred somewhere safe,” Virgil stood up, and he found a place to set Alfred down. There were less people by that spot, so he did not worry about his new frog son getting stepped on. “Okay, let’s go.”

 

They made their way to the building, Logan grabbing Virgil’s hand on the way. He could tell that Virgil was still a little shaken up, but he was glad that he didn’t seem to be on the verge of panicking anymore. 

 

Walking into the building, they found that there were only a few other people inside. It was such a nice day out that everyone wanted to be by the water instead of inside. There were some bathrooms in the back corner to the left from where they walked in. A little ways in front of that were some vending machines full of drinks and snacks. They approached that first, and Logan bought each of them a Sprite. 

 

On the other side of the room, there were a few arcade games set up. There was one of those racing games, a shooting game, Ms Pacman, and even an air hockey table. Immediately, the two of them gravitated towards the air hockey. They had a long battle going on when it came to air hockey, each of them pretty much equal in skill. There was no way to tell who was winning at this point, but they still loved to play for fun. 

 

They ended up playing multiple games, and Roman, Patton, Talyn, and Joan came in to find them when they were on their 17th one. They were tied at this point, each having won eight games. The others found them in deep concentration, neither of them wanting to lose. While they might love each other immensely, they were not willing to even think about letting the other win without putting up their biggest fight. Neither of them were going to go easy. 

 

“They’re at it again,” Roman sighed, used to the couple’s competitiveness when it came to this game.

 

“Who do you think is going to win?” Talyn asked.

 

“Ten bucks it’s Logan,” Joan was confident that they were right.

 

“Ha, I’ll take that bet. It’s totally going to be Virgil.”

 

A few minutes later, Joan frowned as they slid Talyn ten bucks from their wallet. Virgil smirked at Logan, victorious.

 

“You win this time,” Logan said, “congratulations. I’ll beat you next time.”

 

“Sure you will,” Virgil teased, not believing him. 

 

“Let’s get some food!” Patton suggested. The rest agreed, as they were all famished. They walked to the restaurant nearby, eating all of the food that they wanted. When they were done, they headed back to Patton’s grandma’s house, ending their first activity of their vacation.

**Author's Note:**

> I might possibly turn this into a series about submechanophobia, starting with their trip to Disney. Let me know if that’s something you’d be interested in or if this concept has already gotten old. I’d love to share my experiences with living with this fear some more, but if people don’t care about it, then I’d also be fine with ending it here.


End file.
